we went to north carolina, a state that went for the president last time but is swinging toward mitt romney now. and we found the story of the economy in the death and life of asheboro. asheboro grew up on manufacturing, its factories filled with generations of families who built their town near purgatory mountain. but in 2008, asheboro was named one of america's fastest dying towns. the folks there were never going to quit, but they are still struggling. why are we stuck somewhere between recession and recovery? no one better to ask than those who live around purgatory. in randolph county, there's no escaping the second election since the great recession. nonstop, the tv promises a better day or warns of a worse one. folks around here have seen a lot of both. ( whistle blows ) those days start with the signature sound of asheboro at the acme-mccrary textile company. it opened the year that some of its workers helped put a republican in the white house, william howard taft. it was 1909. 103 years later, bill redding runs the place. at its peak, how many employees did you have? >> bill reddi